Route: Error
by KuroShin Master
Summary: A new path has opened up, one that leads to more tragedy and death for the members of the Mekakushi Dan. Even Route XX is nothing compared to it. And the cause of it all just has to be someone who appears once and is to be never seen or heard from again. /Or will he?/
1. Chapter 1

**Route Error: Ayano**

The morning air was cold and chilly, but despite that, Ayano still forced herself to venture out. Fingering the red scarf around her neck, she wondered where she was supposed to meet them. They had given her a sheet of paper with the location on it, but the wind had blown it away before she had gotten a chance to look.  
She sighed. It was too late now, so all she could do was guess where the meeting place would be. The park? The mall? The school? The choices were endless and she couldn't spend all day walking around and searching for them. And she couldn't just go home now, not because she had no choice, but because she refused to. This would be the first time she had ever gone out with her friends, let alone her new friends, and she would not let the chance slip through her fingers.

"Ah! I should've called Shintaro..." She mumbled to herself. Shintaro was her classmate and friend, and he usually acted cold towards her but she knew that he was just an antisocial person. His stubborn NEET attitude was getting a little better though, with the help of their friends, the members of the Mekakushi Dan.  
As she continued down the park's footpath, she hummed a song to herself to keep her mind occupied. Apparently, not thinking could kill off brain cells, and that would make her grades worse off than they already were. Children Record was the name of the song, and ever since she had heard it on the radio at the Mekakushi Dan's hideout, she had become addicted to it. Whenever she was bored or feeling miserable, she would listen to it, and it would lift her spirits up without fail.

A slight movement from behind caught her attention, and she whirled around to see a man staring at her from a distance. Feeling slightly disturbed, she kept on walking, making sure to keep a look out for her friends. However, the man began slowly making his way towards her. A fox mask covered his face, but she could see a... Was it her imagination? Was that a smirk on his face?

Shaking her head, she pretended to not have seen him and was about to step off the footpath and onto the road when he suddenly called out. "Ayano!" This made her whole body freeze and she turned around, fear beginning to take hold of her. The mysterious masked man was now directly behind her. Letting out a tiny squeak she about to run away when he quickly grabbed onto her arm.  
"Calm down! I'm a Mekakushi Dan member as well!" He said urgently. There was no hint of malice or evil to his voice, so Ayano relaxed a little. She hadn't seen or met him before, nor was he ever mentioned by her friends. Was he really one of them as well? Or was he simply lying? She was the leader, #0, but perhaps Kido or someone else had recruited him without her knowing. She gazed up at him in the eyes, or rather the fox mask's eyes. The fact that he was hiding his face was making everything seem slightly creepy, but she was sure he was a good person.  
"Everyone calls me Kokkuri-San, so you can too. Kido recruited me yesterday and told me to come to the meeting today." He added. It was like as if he knew what she was thinking, but maybe the look on her face had given it away.

"However..." Kokkuri-San hesitated, letting go of her arm when he looked down and realised he was still holding onto it. "There has been some trouble." Ayano gasped. What? What trouble? Was he actually a bad person after all? Her face became pale and the wind swirling around seemed to be colder than it than it was before.  
"Your friends have been kidnapped by someone. He wants to see us on the school roof." This was worse news than she had originally thought. Her whole body shook, and she became extremely fearful for her friends. She loved her friends a lot and for them to be kidnapped...  
"Then we're going to the roof." She replied without hesitation. She had always believed herself to be a hero, and she would keep to it. Kokkuri-San stayed silent for what must have been ten seconds before he nodded. "Right. Let's go then before it's too late."

A while later, they were standing on the school roof looking around for the kidnapper. Besides them, there was no-one around in the area. It was Sunday after all, so there were no students hanging around and chatting to each other. Which meant that if they got attacked, there was nobody they could ask or scream to for help.  
"I don't see them anywhere..." Ayano mumbled, wiping away the tears that were rolling down her cheeks. She was a kind, compassionate and caring person, so it was obvious something on this scale would affect her a lot.

Standing a few meters away, Kokkuri-San suddenly exclaimed, "I've found something!"  
With renewed hope, she dashed over to him, curiosity showing in her dark eyes. There was a piece of paper in his hands.  
"I'll read it out loud. Hikari Station, 10:30am. Make sure to be there on time..." Ayano abruptly gasped, seeming to have realised something.  
"That's the note I've lost-" She started to say, wondering how it had gotten all the way here. The wind wasn't really that strong, so a person must've brought it here.  
"Shh there's more. If you are reading this, then that means you are either Ayano Tateyama or Kokkuri-San. Your friends have been captured by me, and if you want to save them, you both have to jump off the roof and acquire a special power. That would increase your chance of rescuing them."  
The school roof, that had once been a great place to hang out during lunch-breaks, was now probably going to be a place where she was to die. What sort of person would still live after jumping off anyway at that height anyway?

Gazing down at the concrete ground below, she saw that they were really high up. She imagined herself lying on the ground in a bloody mess with a broken neck and twisted limbs, and it was not a pleasant thought. But... She had to save her friends, she would save them, no matter the cost. Gaining powers after dying in pairs wasn't something new to her, the Mekakushi Dan members had told her about it, in case anything happened. And she was sure that if she received a power, she would be able to help them.

"I'm up for it." She said to Kokkuri-San, a look of dignity in her eyes. With the red scarf around her neck, she really did look like a super-hero, ready to go out and save people.  
"I see. Then let's do it on the count of three." He whispered, climbing up to the edge of the roof, her hand in his. Ayano's heart was beating fast, and her current breathing pattern was different from the usual. Yes, she was nervous, but she wouldn't back down now. Not if it meant risking her friends' lives.  
"1." She gazed up at the clear, blue sky. There was not a single cloud in sight, and it was getting warmer.  
"2." Her palms were sweaty and tears continued to roll down her cheeks in steady streams.  
"3." She closed her eyes and leaped off, expecting Kokkuri-San to have done the same. However, as she tumbled down to the ground, just before everything went white, she saw that he was still standing on the roof. The mask he wore was no longer on, revealing a wide smirk on his face.


	2. Chapter 2

Pitter patter. Pitter patter. The rain was falling down in a steady stream, and Kido had not brought an umbrella with her. She would have to run as fast as she could to avoid getting as wet as possible, otherwise she would get a cold, something she hated a lot.  
She stood in the same spot for a second, gazing hesitantly at the crowd of people with their umbrellas before taking a breath and setting off. She expertly dodged the many puddles in her path, but smiled to herself whenever she accidentally stepped in one, splashing the ones unfortunate to be around her.

She managed to avoid bumping into anyone, but her luck suddenly ran out when a stray cat dashed past in a hurry. Letting out a surprised yelp, she forgot to see where she was going and ran straight into a man talking on his phone.  
Kido stepped backwards and bowed, cursing herself for how clumsy she was. "Uh... I'm sorry..." She began to say, feeling completely embarrassed.  
However, the man simply swore out loud and bent down to pick his fallen phone before pushing past her. Like as if he never even noticed she was there.

"Huh. What an ass." She grumbled to herself, brushing off specks of dirt off her favourite jacket. But as she continued on her way, she couldn't help but wonder why all that happened. The man was on his phone, yes, but that didn't mean he was looking down at it. For all she knew, his eyes could've been looking straight ahead, so even if she didn't see him, he could.  
"I'm home!" Kido called out, opening the door, after squeezing and shaking as much droplets as she could out of her clothing. As she went upstairs to her bedroom, she caught sight of a photograph hanging on the wall. It was a picture taken a week ago, one of herself and her friend, Ayano. The two of them had started a club, called the Mekakushi Dan, to seek out those who had special powers like them. But... Just yesterday, after postponing the club meeting because Ayano didn't show up, she discovered that she was dead.

According to the news, she had jumped off the school roof, and it had been ruled by police as a suicide case. It was strange though, because Ayano was an optimistic and cheerful girl who loved all her friends. Apart from her terrible grades, her life had no major problems, and besides, who'd ever heard of anyone killing themselves over test scores?

When Kido had first heard it, she had broken down immediately, much to everyone's surprise. They had all viewed her as an emotionless person, and she herself thought the same as well. But her friend's death was a different case, and she was currently beating herself up over it.

All that depression was wearing her out, so she went back downstairs for a light snack. And perhaps talk to the others about Ayano's future funeral service. Kenjirou, Ayano's father was paying for it, as he said that it was the least he could do for everyone. Or something among those lines. But either way, she had told him she greatly appreciated it, but not before breaking down again.

After grabbing a bag of potato chips from the cupboard, she made her way to the living room, where everyone was hanging out. The television was on with some cheesy love film playing (probably Kano's pick), and there was a huge platter of fruit and candy on the coffee table.  
"Hey." She greeted her friends, plonking herself down on her favourite armchair. No-one greeted her back, meaning they either didn't hear her over the sound of the TV, or they were too absorbed in it.  
Whatever. She opened the packet and started eating, her hunger getting the better of her.  
The movie finally ended after a while, and seeing this as the perfect time to strike up a conversation, she pointed at Kano and said, "Hey, what was so interesting about that film? Did you choose it?"  
But for some reason, he didn't say anything or even turn to face her, he simply got up and picked up the remote control to flick to another channel.  
Annoyed, she picked up a pillow and chucked it at him, feeling pleased when it hit him square in the face.

"Ow! Who threw that?!" He demanded, dropping the control back onto the table.  
"Was it you, Seto? Or you, Hibiya? Revenge for the cake thing last week?"  
He continued to interrogate them all by calling their names, but Kido suddenly noticed something. Not even once, did he mention her name.  
"Oh I just remembered... I wonder when Kido is coming back..." Kano added in, looking around the room at everyone.

Huh?

"Yeah... Well, maybe Ayano's death had a bigger impact on her than expected. Maybe she's at the park trying to calm herself down." Seto replied, lightly pinching his pet hamster's cheeks.

What?

"Hmm..."

If this was all a trick, then it was a truly horrible one. She knew that Mary would never try and pretend she wasn't there, so she got up and went over to the white-headed girl.  
"Mary, what are they doing?" Kido asked her, placing both hands on her hips.  
"Should we go look for her?" Mary questioned, seeming not to have noticed that she was right in front of her.

What was going on? Did her power suddenly activate without her knowing?  
She made herself turn it off, and waved a hand in front of Kano's face. But instead, he and everyone else got up and began heading outside.  
Kido rushed after them, just in time to hear them say, "What's this puddle on the front step here?"  
She screamed to say that it was from earlier, but they never turned around, not even once. They simply shrugged and walked away, leaving her standing at the door with a fearful look on her face.  
Her power that had always been her saviour, had now become her worst enemy.  
"Oh god… Why..." She mumbled to herself, tears rolling down her cheeks. She took a step backwards and tripped over her own feet. As she tumbled down, she caught sight of a kitchen knife on the table near her, probably left there accidentally by Momo yesterday.  
As she pulled herself up, she thought to herself; what was the point of life if she couldn't be seen or heard by anyone? She picked up the knife and stared at it hesitantly, before bringing it up to herself.

A scream echoed throughout the whole neighbourhood. It had belonged to Mary, the one who discovered Kido, lying in a pool of deep, red blood and a knife in her hand.  
"Fufufu... I guess it's already started..." A man wearing a fox mask said, quietly observing the whole scene from afar.


	3. Chapter 3

The letters on the stone slab before Seto seemed to dance around in a mocking way, but he knew that they weren't literally doing so. It was just the fact that the tears falling from his eyes were blurring and distorting everything he saw. _Tateyama Ayano. 1997-2014._ Forcefully tearing his eyes away from the gravestone, he took a clumsy step to the right, to stand next to Kano. _Tsubomi Kido. 1998-2014. _The death of the two had a large impact on them all, but the feisty deceiver and Shintaro seemed to have taken it a lot worse. But it was to be expected, seeing as how they were closer to the girls than the rest of them were.

A hand lightly pulled on the sleeve of his green jumpsuit, and Seto turned to see Mary gazing up at him with a teary face, signaling that she didn't want to stay in this place any longer. He had to agree. The feeling of standing in an area filled with buried dead people was not much of a pleasant feeling.

"Alright, gang. Time to go." He called out, clapping his hands loudly to catch the attention of the others. Slowly but gradually, they all gathered around him with depressed looks on their faces, but nonetheless, he knew they were dying to leave as well, away from this moody place. Because Ayano and Kido were no longer with them, he had to step up as the new leader to take her place. At first, he had been unwilling to take the job, feeling that he wasn't up to it, but the others had encouraged him until he finally gave in reluctantly.

As they were walking back to their hideout, Mary suddenly blurted out, "Ah, Seto-kun! I think I left the paper crane Ayano made for me, back at the florist…" They all stopped in their tracks. "Hm? Oh, well don't you guys head on first without me. I'll be right back." Seto told everyone, before rushing to the market square to retrieve the paper craft. He soon found it in no time, and after apologizing to the owner of the shop, was about to go back when a voice caught his attention.

"That girl standing over there… It has been a long time since I've ever taken out my stress on anyone… Murder her? Hm…"

He turned around to see a shady-looking man staring at a high-school girl, grinning in a greedy and menacing manner. Alarmed, he dashed over to them both, standing in between them. He had a feeling that something was wrong though, because people didn't normally say out loud that they were going to kill someone.

"What are you planning on doing?! Killing this poor girl just because you're stressed? Don't be absurd!" Seto burst out, in the most confident voice he could manage to hide the fact that his arms and legs were shaking.

The girl immediately ran off, confused, and apparently didn't want to be involved in the situation. On the other hand, the man took a step towards the trembling teen, a furious look clearly visible on his face.

"Haaah? And just how did you know that I was going to murder her?" The adult demanded, grabbing Seto by his shirt collar and causing him to yelp in surprise.

"Huh? B-but… Didn't you…? He began to say in response, but then he suddenly realized something. He hadn't heard the man speak at all. Rather, he had read his mind without knowing he was doing it. But it didn't matter anymore, because he was currently stuck in a sticky situation, except with his life on the line. He frantically swung his head around to see if there was anyone around that could help him, but there was none, to his dismay. If he didn't want to die, he had to do something fast.

"H-HELP!" He screamed out loud, panicking like crazy and unable to keep calm. This was the only idea he could think of, and perhaps there was a person near here that would hear his shouting and rush over to help. A second later, he heard someone shout back in response and a wave of relief washed over him. However, it was short-lived.

"Now look what you've done, brat. Looks like you'll take her place now." The man hissed at him, moving his huge, muscly hands from the collar to the throat.

Seto gulped, fear showing in his golden eyes as he stared up into the face of his would-be killer. Why did he have to die now? There were still so many things he wanted to do with his friends, and now that he thought about it, they were probably still waiting for him. Thinking that he would come back to them alive without a single scratch. But then again, going back alive _with _one or scratches would be better than going back dead.

_Mary._

He gasped for air as the hands around his neck tightened, his chest yearning for precious oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide. No. No. No. He couldn't die now. He _mustn't _die now. If he did, what would happen to Mary? The deaths of Ayano and Kido had taken a toll on her already, and if he suffered the same fate as well, what would become of her?

Choking, he weakly mumbled to the man to stop it, but he seemed to not have heard. Just before everything went white, his hands that had been clawing at the man's own ones reached down to his pockets. He felt something soft and light; the paper crane Ayano had made for Mary.

_Goodbye._


	4. Chapter 4

As he stood there looking down at the ground, he saw a large shadow slowly coming towards him. Thinking it was 'her', Kano looked up, his heart soaring with hope, but immediately became disappointed to see it was in fact the newest Mekakushi Dan member, known as Konoha. But then again, she was already dead so it couldn't possibly be her anyway. Sighing, he gave the android a slight nod before heading into the kitchen to find something to eat. He missed Kido terribly and the responsibilities of being the new Dan leader were weighing down on him. And with Seto dead, there was no-one else close he could turn to for anything.

Could it just be a coincidence? The question replayed itself in Kano's mind over and over again, stubbornly refusing to fade away. Wasn't it strange for so many Dan members to die within such a short period of time? Deep in thought, he wandered back to the living room, a frown on his face. Was there even such things as coincidences? He wasn't so sure, since he had never been the type of person who thought about such difficult things.

Plopping himself onto the couch, he turned to see Mary sitting quietly by herself in a corner, making the artificial flowers she always made to sell. It was a lonely sight to see and it pained him. He was about to stand up to go accompany her, but the idol beat her to it. So instead, he switched on the TV. It had been left on a news channel, talking about his brother's death in detail. Although he and Seto weren't actually blood-related, they still considered each other as best bros and that was something that would never change.

A sudden urge to eat something sweet burst through his body and he instantly leapt up. Grabbing his favourite, orange wallet, he dashed towards the front door and flung it open, hearing Momo asking him where he was going.

"I'm just going to pay a visit to the candy shop near here!" He shouted back, before leaving the apartment and closing the door behind him. As Kano hurried to his destination, he caught sight of a rather attractive-looking young man that seemed to be heading the same way as him, to the candy shop. He recognized the male as one of Japan's many millionaires, one that had a sweet tooth just like him. Kano suddenly remembered that the person had a VIP card that when presented, allowed anyone to receive a large box of assorted sweets for free once a week.

The deceiver stayed outside the shop and peeked in through the glass window, watching the millionaire pick up a cake box before handing some cash to the cashier and exiting the place. Smirking to himself, Kano wondered if he could possibly change the perspective of the cashier and make it so he looked like the man from before, and receive some free candy with the card. Well, that would only be if the card hadn't yet been used so far this week. It was worth a try though.

He activated his eye ability and strolled inside casually, trying to imitate the man's walking style. Once he arrived at the counter, he stuck his hand inside the pocket of his trousers and prayed that the card was inside. His fingers closed around something cold and slim, and he slipped it out, presenting it to the woman before him in a flourish. It was indeed the VIP card, so he let out a silent sigh of relief.

"Here you go, Mr Takama." She chimed, handing him a small, delicately-wrapped box. Kano mentally concluded that either she had a forgetful memory or that she was just plain stupid, due to the fact that she didn't seem to notice 'he' had already been here a minute ago. He accepted the candy with a wide grin and nodded his thanks, before hastily making his way out of the shop, resisting his urge to just wolf them all down immediately.

Kano deactivated his power with a simple blink and began walking back to the Dan's apartment. However, as he passed a series of alleyways, he swore he saw a masked man in the shadows through the corner of his eye. But upon shaking his head and looking again, the mysterious person was gone. Perhaps it was just his imagination.

A hand shot out of nowhere from behind and clamped onto his mouth, rendering him unable to scream or even utter a single word. Feeling slightly panicky, he tried to twist his head around to see who it was but found he couldn't. He clawed desperately at his attacker but that only succeeded in making the person irritated and pissed off.

Gritting his teeth, the deceiver brought up his foot and forcefully slammed it down on the attacker's own one, causing him to howl in pain and lose his grip. Kano managed to wriggle free and whirled around to see who it was and his golden, cat-like eyes instantly widened. It was _him. _ It was the one who literally strangled his friend to death a few days ago. Anger swirling around inside him, he prepared to punch him in the face but froze when Seto's killer mumbled something under his breath.

"Come on, Takama. I won't kill you if you pay your debt now."

Huh? That sentence left the teenager confused. He had made sure to deactivate his eye ability so he should look like himself now, right? Frowning, he answered back with, "What are you talking about? You must have the wrong person…!"

"Oh yeah? Then explain this!" A pocket mirror was thrust under his face, and although the glass was smudged with dirt, he could clearly see that the face depicted in it was not his own. It was Takama's.

Gulping, Kano opened his mouth and a flurry of words instantly spilled out. "T-that's not me! I mean it is, but…" He bit his lip and decided to just simply do something about the man's perspective. He blinked his eyes but when he looked down, he still looked like the millionaire. Was this a malfunction with his ability? No, could abilities even _have_ malfunctions…?! If he didn't do anything right now, there was a chance he could end up like Seto.

"I swear, I'm not-"He began to say but stopped before he could finish his sentence. A sharp jolt of pain in his stomach left him kneeling on the ground, gasping and wheezing for breath. He clamped a hand over the painful area and it came away sticky with something red. _Blood._

Kano slowly looked up and saw a knife dangling above him, just inches away from his face. The man was wearing a grim expression as he lifted the weapon and brought it down again.


	5. Chapter 5

The silence of the room seemed to be weighing down on Mary as she stared at the portraits of her friends before her. Unable to suppress the tear that rolled down her cheek, she gently placed a hand against the picture of Seto, and let out a loud sob. Momo immediately rushed in with a look of concern on her face, worried whether something bad had happened or not. "What's wrong?' She asked, kneeling down next to her with two bottles of ice tea in her hands.

The part Medusa simply shook her head in response and absent-mindedly accepted a bottle. Raising it up to her lips, she was about to open her mouth and say something when the idol suddenly stood up. "Sorry, but I forgot I had an interview today. I'll see you later, Mary!" And with that having been said, she quickly dashed out of the room, and out of the apartment. That meant the white-haired girl was all alone by herself in the building. Even the hamster Seto owned had gone somewhere on the day of his death.

With a sigh, she gathered herself up and shuffled into the kitchen, biting her lip to prevent tears from making an unwanted appearance. Being alone was nothing new to her; she had been living by herself for a few years in the woods, ever since her mother had died. So why was the loneliness so unbearable for her now?

The sound of the doorbell echoed throughout the apartment and Mary perked right up, wondering who was outside. Leaving the half-empty bottle on the table, she dashed over to the door and opened it, to stare into the face of a man she had never seen before. Horrified, she made an attempt to slam it shut, but before she could do so, his foot wedged itself in between, rendering the door unable to close. "G-get away!" Mary shrieked, taking a step back before turning around and breaking into a slow sprint. A hand grabbed onto her long hair and she was yanked backwards onto the ground. Before she could try to fight back, a piece of cloth was put over her nose and mouth, and everything turned black.

For a moment, darkness was the only thing she could see and feel all around her. She couldn't feel her limbs at all, and a soft moan escaped her lips as she opened her eyes. The light was so bright that she had to blink repeatedly to adjust to it. She looked down and saw that her body was tied up to some sort of stake with rope. What was going on? Petrified, she started wriggling around in a desperate attempt to break free until what she assumed was her kidnapper stepped into view.

"I've finally found you." He smirked, a lit torch in his hands. "It has been a few years, but I'm sure you still remember it…" The mocking grin dropped off his face and was replaced with a furious grimace. "Because you were the bitch that killed my two friends." Not sure about how to respond, Mary simply stared at him with terrified eyes, knowing full well that it had been her mother and not herself who killed them. But it didn't matter did it? Her mother had been trying to save her after all and even ended up dying because of it.

"No..! I don't…" She barely managed to choke out the words when her hair was yanked back once again. "Shut up. You're just a _monster _that deserves to rot in hell." The man snarled, holding out the torch and letting it fall down on the straw surrounding her below. Her heart instantly stopped for a moment, as she wondered whether these were going to be her final moments of life. Was she really going to die now? The dry grass was beginning to smoke, causing her to splutter whenever she inhaled the fumes, and her lungs burned. No more… No more…

"Stop this!" The part Medusa cried out, and willed her eyes to turn red. The man instantly turned to stone and shattered, and she knew that, despite the fact that her vision was clouded from all the smoke. Hardly being able to breathe now, she tried to slip free from the tight ropes, biting back tears. She needed someone. Anyone that could save her from this torture of burning to death.

Like a witch. A monster.

"My, my… How unsightly and improper indeed…" A stranger's voice cut through the sounds of the crackling flames, a voice that was somewhat soothing but menacing at the same time. "It's a pity you know, I had been hoping that you would live longer. But…" Cold fingers made their way onto Mary's eyelids, slowly closing them down as her breaths became shallower with each word that was said. She caught a glimpse of a person wearing a fox mask through the haziness, her mouth opening and closing like as if she had a desperate need to say something.

"Goodbye, my Queen."


	6. Chapter 6

Emptiness. That was all Momo could see around her each time she stepped into the apartment. Bedrooms and belongings had been left as they previously were, and the place had been locked up tightly afterwards. The key was now in her brother's room, who claimed that he would protect it as if it were his computer. It was only every now and then, that the idol would retrieve the key to wander around the apartment, dwelling on past memories and emotions.

Just why did they have to all die? It didn't make sense, and she doubted it ever will. However, she did know that they would never come back, no matter how much she wished for it. Was it just a coincidence that the five of them died in less than a year? Even though they didn't all die from the same causes, it was still pretty suspicious. No, it was _more _than suspicious. And she would make sure she'd get to the bottom of it. However, looking at the time….

"Yet another interview." The idol sighed, hurrying out and locking the door behind her. Since she was currently in a rush, she would just have to return the key back to Shintaro afterwards.

Pulling on the pink hoodie to cover her face, she hastily began making her way down to the studio.

However, upon her arrival, she saw that the doors were firmly stuck, with a piece of paper taped onto the glass; '_Closed due to lost keys – Manager' _With a sigh, Momo took out her mobile phone and was about to call him, when she saw the notification for new messages – one from him and one from… someone she didn't know. Deciding to leave the second message for later, she opened the other one first; '_Sorry, Kisaragi-chan. It seems my keys have gone missing for some reason, so the interview will have to be moved to next week. Keep up the good work, though! __ ' So_ she came all the way here for nothing. Ah, no matter, it was only a 15min walk back home anyway.

"I'm back early, because it got delayed!" She called out to her mother as she shut the door behind her, hearing the greeting from afar – probably the kitchen. Upon reaching her room, Momo flung herself onto the bed, feeling the phone hit her leg from inside the pocket. She was reminded of the unread message from the stranger and took it out to see what it about; curiosity having gotten the better of her. '_I've been watching you for a long time, my darling, ever since you first appeared on television quite a while ago. I know everything about you now – your birthday, the school you go to, even where you live. I love you, Momo-chan. 3' _With a shriek, she threw her device onto the ground, away from her. What the hell?! Was she being stalked by some crazy fan of hers? Her body shivering uncontrollably, she was about to go back downstairs when she felt a hand clamp over her mouth. "Ahhh… So we finally meet…" A low, breathy voice whispered into her ear, sending unpleasant chills running down her spine.

A look of alarm crossed over her face as she realised it had been the guy who had sent the creepy message to her. Desperate to get away from him, Momo summoned up her strength to open her mouth and bit his hand with much force. The man immediately let out a yell and released her, cradling his wounded hand with his other one. Well serves him right, she thought to herself, grabbing a microphone from her desk to use as a weapon. She doubted her stalker was going to leave her alone, and she would need something to defend herself. "Get out of here!" She demanded furiously, swinging the item around like some sort of protective sword.

"Hoho… I came all the way here expecting a cute, vulnerable girl…" He licked his lips in an unpleasant way. "…But I received the opposite." All of a sudden, the stalker grabbed Momo by the shoulder and pushed her onto the bed, yanking the microphone out of her hands. "I've got no need for someone like _you_."

Her face completely pale, Momo immediately started thrashing her arms and legs around in an attempt to make him go away, but to no avail. "No! Leave me alone!" She screamed, desperately wishing her brother or mother would hear all the commotion and come to her rescue. Footsteps could be heard running up the stairs, and her spirits lifted.

"You bitch!" He hissed, his foul breath causing her to cough violently. "I'd been hoping to play with you, but now…" Raising the microphone high in the air with an insanely wide grin on his face, he looked more like a psychopathic killer. And his face was all that she would see before a numbing pain spread from her head to the rest of her body, everything turning pitch-black.


	7. Chapter 7

The daily morning routines that she fulfilled every day were becoming more and more of a bore to her. With a frustrated yell, Ene flung the word document away from the screen in front, abruptly closing the window. Blue eyes flashing and dainty fingers fidgeting around in boredom, she began to look around for something else to do. Her master was currently still asleep, for the first time in months, and so was his sister. Sighing, she began typing random things on the internet browser, topics ranging from soda cans to triceratops. Then without realizing, she had typed in the aliases of all her no longer alive friends - Hero, Concealer, Stealer, Deceiver, Queen and… Captivator. Ah that's right. Momo was now also one of the dead.

A blog appeared as one of the search results, one labeled as '_Kokkuri-San'_. Hm? If she recalled correctly, that was the name of some sort of fortune-telling ritual, where you asked a question and the coin would tell you the answer. Interested, she opened it and immediately let out a horrified scream. The faces of her friends' corpses were staring right back at her, pictures taken before they had been discovered by the police officers. But it was the captions underneath them that shocked her the most. _'Red is the color of Death' _and _'Poking into one's business comes with severe consequences'. _Anger boiled inside of her as she continued to scroll down the blog page, seething. Who? Who would do such a thing?! Somehow, she had a feeling that this sick person was also the reason why they died. As if their deaths were a mere coincidence!

Ene suddenly stopped. On the second page, there was a list of names she knew very well. They were written in a specific order, and most of them were crossed out with what seemed to be blood. And the first one not yet crossed out was a name most familiar to her out of all of them. _Takane Enomoto_. That was when she knew; she was the next to die.

Face pale and breath heavy, she took a step backwards and let out a shriek when a face suddenly appeared in front of her. "Calm down, it's just me!" Shintaro sat down in the chair in front of his computer, dark hair still ruffled in a mess from just waking up from a long sleep. "Geezus, you scared me! Knock on the door, would you?" She sighed, floating up closer to greet him. He simply shook his head in response and said, "Computers don't _have_ doors." Ene shrugged, a bright smile slowly breaking out across her tiny face, mainly obscured by her blue bangs and the armor-like objects on her cheeks.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I'll be going out to get mum the groceries now, do you want to come?" He began putting on his favorite red jersey, stopping when the tiny cyber-being suddenly went into a fit of giggles. "What? What's so funny?!" Ene simply continued laughing, showing no signs of calming down anytime soon. "Just tell me!" He demanded again in a furious tone, having no idea as to why she was acting this way. She finally ceased a while later, wiping tears away from her eyes with those blue sleeves of hers. Apparently, whatever made her laugh was so hilarious that she cried.

"You, going outside this willingly?!" After making that brief statement, she chuckled once more, to the frustration of the NEET standing before the computer. He blushed out of embarrassment and snatched up his mobile phone, glaring at her before leaving the room. Ene smiled to herself and shook her head as she began travelling to his device through the internet in the house. All thoughts of the blog and Kokkuri-San had vanished from her mind at this point, and she wanted it to stay that way as long as possible.

At this time of hour, there were lots of people loitering around the shopping mall, busy scampering around to prepare for the upcoming Christmas holiday. For once, Shintaro would be spending it with an incomplete family, what with his sister already being dead. And as for Ene… She had never really spent it in her current body before, so it was going to be a new experience.

"Hey, how much are you going to buy?" She asked for what must've been the tenth time in the last hour. With a sigh, the NEET suddenly stopped in his tracks and stuffed the phone into his jersey pockets, to the surprise of the cyber-being. "Master!" She cried out, beginning to pout. A sly grin spread across her face as she was about to play out loud an embarrassing song Shintaro had been singing in the shower.

Before she could do so however, everything tilted sideways and the sensation of falling enveloped her whole body. A dull clutter could be heard, and for a moment, she could see nothing. Just darkness. "Master? What's going on? Hello?" She kept on asking, although she already had a feeling as to what had just happened. Shintaro's phone had fallen out of his pocket. With her still inside.

The footsteps of people continued to echo around her as she sat there in the dark, panic beginning to grow inside of her. What if someone stepped on the phone? What if a gangster picked it up and sold it? Hundreds of horrible possibilities swirled inside of her mind, giving her a slight headache. She wished Shintaro would suddenly realize it had fallen out and turned around to search. Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then fifteen. Apart from footsteps and the chattering from other people, the only thing she could hear was her own tiny heart-beat.

It was half an hour later before the phone was picked up and the bright white blinded her eyes. Spirits lifted and heart relieved, Ene opened her mouth to greet her master with the usual greeting, but stopped. It wasn't his face staring back at her. It was one of a stranger – a foreign looking female with skin as pale as snow. A real looker, actually. The girl blinked, seeming to be just as surprised. "Huh? Are these shimejis a thing now?" The cyber-being said nothing, not knowing what to say in response. "Ah! Maybe these are new updated ones that have the same characteristics as Siri!"

Ene tried to distract her from thinking of such a thing. "Hey, lady! Bring this phone to the police right this instant!" The foreigner shook her head, a cheeky grin spreading across her face. "No. New shimejis like you are capable of hacking into accounts, right?" Ene opened her mouth, wanting to convince her that she couldn't.

"You want to go to the police? Then let's make a deal. You hack for me, and I take you there. What do you say?" The cyber-being thought for a moment, then reluctantly agreed. Why not? What harm would there be in agreeing to this deal? Just as long as it wasn't the account of some famous celebrity or politician. Though that was likely to be the case. "What's your name then?"

"I'm Catherine. And you are…?"

"I'm Ene."

"Wow, that's a cool name! It sounds rather familiar though…" Catherine closed her eyes, trying to remember the reason as to why that was. "Ah, no matter. Let's go over there under that tree; it's rather sunny here." Of course, having no legs and being confined inside the phone, Ene wasn't the one that needed to move. "So, whose account am I going to be hacking into?"

A grin. That was the foreigner's first response to her question. "Have you heard of a game called Dead Bullet?"

Ene slowly nodded and smiled a tiny smile. Of course she had! That had been her favorite game as a human after all. As if she could not know what it was, especially since she had placed second in the whole country.

"I want you to hack into hers and delete her account." The smile instantly melted away.

"Wait, whose?" Somehow, there was a sinking feeling inside of her, one she couldn't explain.

"Lightning Dancer Ene!" Was the answer she had been dreading, and it was the answer to her question.

"What?! Why… why that one…?" Ene gasped. She never knew there were people who hated her for being… so good at the game. It had taken months of practice, so of course she would become so good at it!

"I hate her. I hate how she always… always beats me every time! It's so unfair!" Catherine gritted her teeth, her fingers curling up into a fist, making it look like she wanted to fight with someone.

Ene would've never agreed to this deal if she had known it would've been her Dead Bullet account. In an attempt to dissuade Catherine, she tried telling her that practice makes perfect, but to no avail. The foreigner was too consumed by her anger to listen. She disliked having to train so hard. Little did she know that Ene had to do exactly that to get where she had gotten to back as human.

"Hey. I remember now."

Ene stopped, and held her breath, wanting to hear what she had to say, although also dreading it. "Your name is the same as the Lightning Dancer's. And she had been inactive on the game for months already, with people thinking something had happened to her."

"You're Takane, aren't you?"

The cyber-being's blue eyes widened, her mouth opening and closing as if to respond, but no words came out. She simply stared at Catherine with a shocked expression on her face. Feeling numb and cold.

The stranger's fingers pressed onto 'Settings', and hovered over the words: Reset and delete everything. Ene saw what she was about to do and cried out, "No! I'll hack into the account! Please don't delete me!"

Catherine smiled sadly, and pressed it. "I'm sorr– "

There was a flash of blue and white, then nothing.


End file.
